In modern mining, safety is one of the most important issues. With increasing density of vehicles on mining sites, it is essential to have a proximity awareness system to reduce the risk of vehicle collisions. In particular, there are large mining vehicles (such as trucks for transporting ores or soils), which are several times larger than a utility and/or personnel transport vehicles (such as a utility, four-wheel drive etc.) at a mining site.
A vehicle collision between a mining vehicle and a utility vehicle can result in fatalities (typically to the utility vehicle occupants) and often result in casualties to the driver and/or the passengers of the utility vehicle.
Further, due to the size and configuration of mining vehicles, it is challenging for the driver to observe the whole of the surroundings of the moving mining vehicle especially in confined surroundings such as those in underground mines, such as tunnels shared by both types of vehicles. If a speed restriction is applied to the mining vehicle, it will reduce the productivity of that mining vehicle.
Thus, there is a need for a proximity awareness system to reduce the risk of vehicle collision, in particular, those involving mining vehicles and utility vehicles.
There are known systems which attach a transceiver on each vehicle (working in the UHF and VHF range), such that when vehicles carrying the transceivers are within proximity to each other the drivers of each vehicle will be alerted. The transceivers provide a warning of imminent collision to vehicle operators, thus enabling early reaction and reducing likelihood of injuries to personnel or operators, and nil or less damage to vehicles and equipment. There are however limitations to the existing system, for example, the range over which these systems work or that since they are not co-ordinated in any way they can interfere with one another and that warnings can consequently be less timely or not occur at all.
It is the aim of the present invention to offer an alternative system or a system which improves the reliability of a vehicle proximity awareness system operating at a mining site.